At Front Row CRM we believe in the sales rep and built a CRM from the ground up as a mobile system. This allows the sales rep to complete and submit sales reports in less than 60 seconds from any mobile device, leaving more time for selling. We have added features to help the sales reps be more productive and improve compliance, including data and information retrieval, note review, location and directional maps, contact information, camera integration, sync with Outlook or Google PIM and more.

Monday, March 31, 2014

3 Keys to Successful CRM (Regardless of Who You Are)

CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems have been with us for
decades, yet most sales forces don't get the most out of theirs. I see
this with small businesses and large global clients. It's a big
investment with little adoption. It has high expectations and low
perceived value. There's lots of data, but limited insights. But how
can this be when so much sincere effort has been invested in making CRM a
game-changing innovation?

Ironically, many sales forces don't get the most out of their CRM
system because they literally try too hard. They want their CRM to be
the omnipotent center of their sales universe from day one. The expect
it to be the single, all-knowing hub of all selling activity and
information. If that sounds like your organization’s desire, then we
would offer you only four words counsel: Good luck with that.

The number of companies that we’ve seen succeed with this
center-of-the-universe strategy out of the gate can be counted on one
hand. And the number that we’ve seen fail is, well, all of the rest.
If you want to have a successful CRM strategy, regardless of the scale
or scope of your sales force, then here are 3 fundamental strategies that could put you on the right path:

1. Keep It Simple

The French philosopher, Antoine de Saint-Exupery, said that perfection is achieved not
when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to
take away. And so it is with a CRM system. We’ve seen company after
company add as many bells and whistles to their CRM tool as technically
possible too quickly, and they did so with the best of intentions. Yet
they typically realized poor outcomes. The fewer tabs, the fewer
fields, the fewer functions you can get away with in your CRM tool, the
better. Add features and functions to build on to a workflow that is
established.

2. Focus on the Things that Matter

Salespeople need focus, and sales management, candidly, is not good at giving it. We tell salespeople that everything
is important, and in no place is that more evident than a CRM system.
When you’re choosing those few tabs, fields, and functions that should
survive in your tool, choose the ones that will focus your sellers on
the things that really matter. CRM should be put in place for one
reason primarily: to make salespeople more productive. Any distraction
from that focus is a waste of bits and bytes.

3. Remember, CRM is for the Reps

If we are honest with ourselves (and even if we’re not), CRM systems
were originally sold as a fantastical reporting machine for senior
leadership. Consequently, it functions tremendously well at generating
management reports. However, that’s not the best use for CRM. The
ideal role for CRM is to make it easier for salespeople to do their
jobs. How can it enable better selling and improve buyer/seller
interactions? That is the riddle that needs to be solved. And when you
finally solve it, user adoption, perceived value, and field-level
insights will soon flow from your CRM tool effortlessly.
These three strategies will lead to highly successful CRM
implementations. We measure CRM success by its ultimate sales outcomes,
not by its technical merit. CRM is an extremely powerful technology
that can flex and grow to amazing heights. And therein is the problem.
If you want to succeed, tame your ambitions. Focus on the few
important things that will make sellers better. And then, miraculously,
CRM will become the game-changer that we all want it to be.

About Front Row CRM

Front Row Solutions is an innovative CRM sales tool that utilizes sales reporting applications and maps to increase productivity and revenue. Sales will see an immediate benefit in commissions and ease of use. Managers see real time reports, statistics and activity that is meaningful. www.FrontRow-Solutions.com